The Letters
by StarUponHeaven
Summary: How did everyone react when they got their first Hogwarts letters? You're about to find out. It's been done before, but I haven't read any of those stories. So this is not stolen.
1. James Potter I

James Potter I

**Author's note: **There have been many attempts to write these fics. I haven't read one of them. Here's my try. Hope you like it, review.

**James Potter I**

"It's here, it's here, it's here," James cried as he looked out the window in the kitchen.

"Calm down Jamie, you knew it would arrive today, you're birthday is today," his mother said, ruffling his hair, making it a lot messier than it already was.

"I'm going to Hogwarts, I'm going to Hogwarts, I'm going to Hogwarts," James started hopping up and down, causing his father to crack a smile when he walked into the kitchen.

"Calm down there, tiger. 'G'morning James, happy birthday. I see you got your letter," he said, opening up the window, letting the owl inside.

George Potter was not a young man. He and Sarah, James' mother had both been in their late forties when James came. They had been trying to have a baby for many years and had almost lost all hope, when Sarah started to have morning sickness which could only be explained one way. Their age had started to show; George had grey hairs above his ears and Sarah had started to get a bad sight, but George had been wearing glasses since before he could walk.

"Thanks dad," James said, grinning his all-to-well-known mischievous smile. But when he saw the owl hop inside, his grin faltered.

His hands shaking, he got up and slowly making his way over to the window. When he reached it, he hesitated a moment before carefully removing the letter from the owls foot. When finished, the owl flew outside again.

"You don't have to rip it up so quickly," his father said laughing, noticing James opening the letter so that it wouldn't rip.

"I want to keep it," James said, sticking his tongue out in concentration. "I'm going to keep every letter so I can remember what I felt like when I got them for the rest of my life."

"That's nice, Jamie," his mother said, ruffling his hair once again.

"Hand me the paper, will you Sarah?" George, James' father, said.

"Sure George, but I got to warn you, there's nothing interesting in there."

There was a loud gasp from the other end of the room.

"Nothing interesting? It's my birthday, and the date is extremely interesting, read it at the top." James' eyes drifted back down to the letter he was clutching in his hands.

"No Quidditch first year," he said, glumly. "And not even a broom." Now he looked miserable. "Well, there's always next year, I guess." He doubted it.

"I remember your father having the exact same response," Sarah Potter said, sending her husband an affectionate smile.

"How'd you see it?" James said, confused.

"He wouldn't stop talking about it on the train," she said, still smiling.

"Well, I got the beater position second year," he shrugged. "I guess you can't have everything in life."

"A history of magic by Bathilda Bagshot. Isn't she the one you always go to tea with once a month, mom?"

"She sure is. There is no information dating after 1900 in there, though."

"Why?" James looked perplexed.

"Well, I just don't think she would have fitted it into the book, plus, there is plenty more left of this century."

"Oh." James continued on with his letter.

"Who's teaching transfiguration?" he asked.

"Well, if I'm not mistaken, Minerva McGonagall teaches it now."

"That strict Head Girl from first year?" Sarah's eyes bulged.

"Yeah, that's the one. I tell you, son, you do _not _want to get on her bad side."

"Don't tell him that," Sarah said, throwing a warning glance at George. "You know he always does the opposite of what we, or perhaps _you,_ tell him."

"I've got some well planned pranks for first year," James said, thinking. "Maybe I could use one or two on ..."

"_James Potter._"

"Oh, all right. I was just joking, Mum."

"You better."

"Now, who wants some egg and bacon," George said cheerfully.

"Me, me, me," James chanted, his letter long lost. "But, dad, when can we go and buy school things?"

His father laughed. "We probably won't go until August, there's a little over five months until school starts."

"So I won't get my want 'til _August?_" James looked disappointed.

"Well, we _could _go and buy your wand next month ..."

"I'm going to get a wand, I'm going to get a wand ..."

"James, sit down and eat your eggs," Sarah said, her mouth twitching.

"Sure Mum." He sat down and stuffed food in his mouth. "'m oa o ie a e'er," he said as an explanation to his rush.

"How many times do I have to tell you, James," his mother said, "don't eat when your mouth is stuffed."

He swallowed. "I'm going to write a letter, that's why I'm eating so fast."

"Oh, to whom, may I ask?"

"Brian. He won't get his letter until next month," he said as an afterthought and a mischievous smile spread across his face.

Brian McKinnon was James' best friend, his father, Joseph, being George's best friend since Hogwarts. Brian was, like James, a child that came late. But Brian also had brothers, older than himself, all of whom had finished Hogwarts, the oldest, a little over eight years before. James' chanting of: "I'm older than you," when trying to decide who got to be in charge, could often be heard around the house when Brian visited, even though there only was a two weeks difference.

"Can I invite him over for my birthday this weekend?" he asked hopefully. James hated to have his birthday on a week day, and particularly on a Monday, as it was that year.

"Sure, if Marlene and Joseph are all right with it, I don't see the problem."

"Wicked, thanks dad," James grinned.

"Now, why don't you go and write that letter of yours. I'm sure Brian will be thrilled when you show off for having received the Hogwarts letter."

"Did you hear Dumbledore's Headmaster now?" James heard his mother say as he walked out of the kitchen. He walked up two flights of stairs, finding his room on the first door to the left.

James' room was enormous. The walls were covered with Quidditch posters of famous chasers, though you could hint a bit of favouritism in Topher Connolly, playing for the Irish National Quidditch team and the Kenmare Kestrels.

_Dear Brian …._

'No, scratch that. I don't want to have it look like I'm in love with him or something,' James thought, throwing the parchment in the garbage.

_Brian,_

_I just got my letter. I can not believe I'm eleven years old already. I mean, I can remember when we were eight and playing with those action figures your dad bought you. We're to mature for them now. We're practically adults. Well, I am. You won't be for another fourteen days. _(A large happy smiley). _Sorry, I won't say I'm older than you …_

_Anyway, dad says that you can come over this weekend to celebrate my birthday if your parents allow you to. I'll cross my fingers and hope they do, even though I know they almost never say no to you, since you're the youngest (spoiled brat, not that I'm not). _

_Dad says he's going to go with me next month to buy a wand. I can't wait to see what I'll get. (Phoenix feathers, unicorn hair?). I've heard from dad that Mr. Ollivander is freaky. I'm already nervous._

_Dad also said that some women named Minerva McGonnawho, or something, teaches Transfiguration now. That's the subject that appeals to me the most. He also says never to get on her bad side (now why would he say that to _me_?). She was supposedly Head Girl when he was a first year. I've got some great pranks forming in my head, and I'm hoping to get one or two on the Slytherin head this year (…). I've just got to be extra careful and plan it well so I won't get caught. _

_So, what do you reckon Dumbledore's like. Mum, okay, dad to, say that he's a bit of a weirdo, but brilliant. He was their transfiguration teacher I think. I don't know, Mum says he wears purple cloaks and matching hats with stars in it. I reckon he's a bit coocoo_

_Now, I'm going to inspect my letter better. They say you can bring an owl, and I think I'm going to pursue my parents to buy me one._

_Yours, _

_James._

Later that day, when James was sitting in the kitchen again (he never could go three hours without eating) he heard saw his dad's owl tapping on the window with a letter tied to its leg. He immediately rushed to open it, allowing the owl to hop inside.

The response was just as long as James' letter.

_Dear James, (_'Come on, we're eleven. _Dear _my ass,' James thought, but dismissed it.

_Mum says I can come this weekend. I can't wait, your parties (does it count as a party with just the two of us?) always are the best. I mean, prank your parents and not get scolded? Life doesn't get any better than that. _

_As to what wand you'll get: I think it'll be Phoenix feathers, (pliable perhaps?) and of mahogany. (Dad says it's almost every time after the months you're born in). I met Mr. Ollivander once. When Chris (_'Christopher McKinnon, the rule-breaker. Such a role-model,' James thought) _broke his wand during fifth year. Your parents are right, he creeps the living shit out of me._

_As for Minerva McGonagall (not McGonnawho, James), my brothers say you're right. She's extremely strict. I don't think we should be getting on her bad side._

_As for the Slytherin head, I'm in, you've just got to tell me what the plan is. I'm looking forward to it. Chris says Horace Slughorn picks out his favourite students and invites them to his so called "Slug-club". Ugh, the thought makes me sick._

_As for Dumbledore, Lewis (_Brian's oldest brother)_ says he's brilliant. He always starts the year be saying some words no one has ever heard before, then they eat and then he comes with his full-of-jokes speech. I can't wait to hear it on our first day._

_How do you reckon they sort us? It's always been a bit of a secret, I guess. But I don't think I believe Chris telling me that we have to fight off a werewolf. Then there would be too many werewolves in Britain._

_Yes, why would your dad say such a thing to you? Well, it might have something to do with that you manage to get in more trouble than all my brothers combined, _even _Chris. And that's a tough job to pull. Well, that's all there is to say about it._

_You just had to rub it in my face, didn't you? That I'm fourteen days younger than you? It's not as if I'm slower in maturity than you. I mean, I probably think that I'll hit puberty before you._('Ew, I'm eleven,' James thought.) _And as to that we're elven, we're ELEVEN, not fifteen. I mean, all right, I remember the action figures too. We burnt them on my last birthday. _

_Dad says he'll buy me an owl for school. "So I can write to them every day," he says. Like hell. I'll maybe write two-three times a week. ('_He's definitely a teenager.')

_Chris is trying to steal your owl. I think he's confunded or something. Have to talk to Lewis about it. It looks like he thinks it's his. So bye._

_Yours,_

_Brian._

**Author's note: **I can not believe I pulled it off. 1927 words in a story that could have just as easily been 300 words. Well, I'm proud of it. I'm actually thinking about maybe writing a story to go along with this one, The First Day. So it will be like two-shot, in two stories, so every character will have their chapter on exactly the same number.

By the way, I just had to squeeze it in that James thinks he's so mature. I mean, I'll be fifteen this year, and I feel _so _mature, I mean, next year, we'll be the oldest in our school. But then we'll be just youngsters again. (Miserable expression.)

Anyway, the other story, it's just a thought now. Hope you like this one and review. Next one will probably be Lily Evans. I've got some ideas. (Ki'n.) You won't understand 'til you read it.


	2. Lily Evans

Lily Evans

**Lily Evans**

"Mum, is there any letter in the mail for me?" an eleven-year old Lily Evans called down the stairs from the second-floor landing.

"No dear, are you expecting something?" her mother, Violet, asked.

"No," Lily called down-stairs. "I guess not," she continued, quietly to herself.

Lily had not told her parents about being a witch. She knew that they wouldn't believe her. Even though they loved her and everything, she had never met more logical people. She knew that if she had proof, they would accept it.

Severus had said the letter would come on their birthdays. His had come in the beginning of the month. He had been utterly thrilled to receive it. He had come straight to her and showed it to her.

"I think yours will be different," he had said.

"Why?" she had asked him, confused.

"Well, you're a Muggle-born," he explained, "and they probably have someone from Hogwarts or the Ministry of Magic come and tell you about everything."

Yes, Severus Snape was Lily's best friend, or at least she felt like he was. At first, she hadn't believed him when he told her she was a witch. I mean, who would believe a boy lurking behind bushes spying on you? It wasn't until she began thinking, and came to the conclusion that the only explanation for why she could do all these amazing thins, was that it really_ was_ magic.

Her birthday was today. 30th of January, and she absolutely loved it. It meant she would get her driver's license early, you weren't unlucky enough to be born after September, or where you unlucky enough to have your birthday during summer. One of her friend had a summer-birthday, and she detested it, because no one would wish her a happy birthday and neither would you get a birthday song sung for you while in class, and the only people she met on her birthday were usually her family.

Lily Evans loved her life, friends and family. She knew that by going to Hogwarts she would only see them during holidays, but she couldn't wait to begin studying magic. Sev had already taught her the big stuff, the stuff you needed to know before entering the wizarding world, but she just couldn't wait to get a wand or magical books to read.

If there was one thing Lily liked, it was reading. She could sit for hours doing nothing else. She read everything she could get her hands on. Once, when she was ten, she had gotten herself caught up in one of her mother's romance novels. She thought she'd be traumatized for life after reading some parts of it.

"Lily, you should get down here birthday girl if you want to eat your birthday breakfast," she heard her father, Carson, called up the stairs. "Your sister is eying it rather suspiciously."

"Am not," she hear Petunia yell. "I just can't wait for _my _birthday breakfast. Why couldn't you have me in January like Lily?"

"Because fate decided to bring you to us in October, love," Violet said.

"Couldn't fate make dad's sperm go into your egg in April instead?"

"_Petunia Amanda Evans._"

"Sorry, Mum. We had to learn about things like Genital Herpes yesterday. It was gross."

"Petunia, you are thirteen years old and you should know better than to say these things in front of your parents," Lily heard her father say, somewhat accusingly, somewhat amused.

At that point, Lily decided to get her butt down-stairs. Her breakfast looked exquisite, bacon and eggs, her favourite, along with baked beans and toast. Her all-time favourite breakfast, the one she always had for her birthday.

"Morning, Lils, and happy birthday," Petunia said as she saw Lily walk into the kitchen.

"Thanks, Tunia," Lily said, accepting a small package from her sister.

"You'll never guess what it is."

Lily groaned. She knew that game. Now she would have to guess over and over, until finally she would give up.

"A necklace?" she asked.

"No, guess again."

"A ring?"

"No."

"A mouse? A pen? Money?

"Open it, open it."

It was, surprisingly, a t-shirt. It had been stuffed into the small box along with twenty pounds.

"Thanks Tunia," Lily said, seeing that the t-shirt was pink. It would clash horribly with her hair.

Just then, she heard the mailbox open and a letter, a heave one, landed on the floor.

"I thought the postman had already come?" Lily's mother said.

"I'll go and check," Lily said, knowing what she would find.

"All right, love."

"Maybe it's that book you ordered?" her father said as she walked out of the kitchen.

"I suppose …"

But Lily wasn't listening anymore. Sure enough, when she turned the letter, addressed to her in green ink, she saw a large H surrounded by a badger, a serpent, a lion, and an eagle.

"Hufflepuff for the noble, Slytherin for the cunning, Gryffindor for the brave, and Ravenclaw for the smart ones," Lily chanted under her breath.

"Who is it from, love?" she heard her mother call.

"Oh, it's from Severus," she said, hoping to get to read it thoroughly before showing it to her parents.

"… don't know what she sees in that boy," she heard her father say as she ran up the stairs.

"He says she's special," Petunia said sarcastically.

Lily hurried into her room and locked the door behind her. She quickly ripped open the envelope and out rolled three parchments.

The first one she took said that she had been accepted into Hogwarts – School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

_We are pleased to tell you that you have been accepted into Hogwarts – School of Witchcraft and Wizardry._

'Bla-bla-bla,' Lily thought as she read on.

_Since you have no magical ancestry__ that we know of, a teacher from the school will arrive in approximately two hours to tell you everything you need to know._

_Sincerely,_

_Deputy Headmistress,_

_Minerva McGonagall_

'Now all I have to do is wait for that teacher, then I can convince Mum and dad,' Lily thought.

The next parchment was a list of equipments she would need. She looked over her list quickly and was pleased to see that there were some catching titles on her list of books.

'I can't wait for my wand,' she thought as she scanned the list further. Severus said he'd gotten a birch wand with a dragon heartstring, fourteen inches. Oh, how she hoped she would get one with unicorn hair. Sev had said: "A wand with a unicorn hair usually fits a person who is pure of heart."

'I am, aren't I?' Lily wondered.

The time couldn't have gone any slower even if Lily would have used some 'accidental' magic.

'Ten minutes …. Fifteen minutes … Eighteen and a half minute …' Lily thought exasperated. 'Well I might as well do something to distract myself.

"Mum, I think I'm going to go to see Severus. I'll be back in an hour or so," she called out just as she closed the door and ran down the street, her Hogwarts letter in one hand.

Severus lived just two streets away from Lily, so it took only about five minutes to walk there, but on Lily's speed, it took three minutes. She stood outside the door of his shabby house, panting and trying to catch her breath. When it had been regained, she knocked on the door, praying for Sev to be home.

A surly-looking man opened the door. Tobias Snape, Sev's father. She detested the man. He gave her the creeps.

"BOY! Get your ugly ass down here. There's someone at the door for you," he yelled as he slammed the door in Lily's face. She was used to it. Not even ten seconds later the door opened revealing Severus in his oversized clothes, once belonging to his father.

But the expression on his face when he saw Lily made it look like he was wearing a tuxedo, in Lily's opinion.

"Did you get it? You got in right? I've been so nervous, I thought maybe I had been wrong. Oh, happy birthday by the way," he said without taking a breath.

"Calm down Sev, I'll tell you all about it. But," she hesitated, "it's such a beautiful day, and since it's January, I don't want to spoil it."

"It's all right, Lils," he smiled wryly. "It's all right if you don't want to come in. I've been _dying _to get out of there anyway."

So they did, they walked down the street in the bright sunlight.

"Now, to answer your questions," Lily began. "Yeah, I got it, I got it all right. And there was no need to be nervous," she smiled. "I knew after what you'd told me that I was a witch. And thanks."

"What did it say? The letter?" he asked, eyeing her wistfully, though Lily didn't notice.

"The same as yours, except, because there are no wizards or witches in the family that we know of, a teacher will come to explain it to me and my parents." She shrugged. "As if I need it."

Severus laughed at this. "He'll be so surprised to find that you know so much."

"I sure do hope so," Lily stated, a little proud of herself.

"What did your parents say? Will they let you go?" Severus turned nervous again.

"I haven't told them yet," Lily confessed, a little awkward.

"Why?" he gasped.

"Well, I don't think they'll believe me. They'll think that it's a prank. But if that teacher will come and explain it to them, and show them magic, then they'll hopefully accept it.

"I hope they won't hate you." Severus became downright depressed. Lily knew how his father detested magic. How he hated that his only son had turned out to be a wizard. He had probably been hoping for a squib.

"Oh, Sev. They won't. But just think of all the fun times we'll have during Hogwarts."

"If we'll be in the same house, there is."

"I'm sure we will," Lily said encouragingly.

"Not unless we'll both turn out as Hufflepuff's, because the last I checked, no Muggle-born that I know of has been accepted into Slytherin."

"Well, I guess we'll just have to break history then," Lily said determent.

The next half an hour passed by quickly and soon it was time for Lily to return home if she didn't want to miss the teacher.

"Bye Sev. I'll come tomorrow and tell you how it all worked out, all right?"

"All right, Lils."

Eight minutes and thirty-two seconds later, Lily found herself sitting on the living room couch, squeezed between her parents who were staring at a very strict looking woman in green robes with a pointy green hat on her head.

"I assume you know the reason for my visit?" she said, and even though she was smiling, Lily knew that she'd better not make that woman angry.

"Erm, honestly? No," her father said, hoping to get to the bottom of why that strange woman, who was wearing robes like a fifteenth century lady, was in his house.

"But surely your daughter has shown you her Hogwarts letter?" she said, somewhat surprised.

"Letter?" Violet asked. "We haven't seen any letter. Wait …."

'Oh, no, here it comes,' Lily thought as she saw it dawn to her mother.

"Lily, dear. That letter you received this morning wasn't from Severus at all, was it not?"

"Um, no," Lily said as she took the letter from inside her sweater and handed it to her mother who accepted it with a bewildered expression.

As she read it you could hear an: "Oh my god … Dear heavens …" passing out her mouth just before handing it to her husband who looked just as bewildered as she had just moments before.

"Mum?" Lily said, putting on her most innocent face.

"Lily, dear, I don't know what to say," Violet said, looking at the woman sitting next to them.

"McGonagall, was it?" Carson Evans said after reading the letter, glaring at the woman. "Surely this is some kind of a joke? This is ludicrous, there is no such thing as magic."

"I assure you there is Mr Evans," McGonagall said ('_Professor _McGonagall to me,' Lily thought).

"If you are so sure of it, why don't you prove it," he challenged.

"Mr Evans, you must know that we wizards and witches are under the laws of the Statue of Secrecy, and may not do magic in front of muggles ("What did you just call us?" Carson said in a high-pitched voice but McGonagall ignored him), such as yourselves. A muggle is nothing you should be ashamed of to be called. A muggle is simply a name we have over non-magical people, people that can't perform magic."

"I still need proof," he said, still insulted by the muggle-reference. "Statue of Secrecy or not, I am not about to send my daughter off to a strange school unless I know that it is for real. For all I know you might be kidnappers hoping to get my daughter."

"I guess … I mean, I could, maybe …" she swept her eyes over the living room and bumped her eyes into a teacup lying on the table. She pointed her wand at it and muttered something under her breath, and instantly the teacup grew whiskers, than a head, than it was transformed into a small cat.

"Ooo, I've always wanted to do that," Lily cried. "But Severus said we would not learn something like this until at least third year."

There it came, the revelation, the one she'd been dreading to tell her parents.

"You knew?" Violet's eyes bulged. "Lily, how long have you known. And Severus knows to? Is he a part of it, this scam?"

"What scam, Mum?" Lily said, stroking the cats back. "I've known for about six months, but I'm telling you, it's not a scam. See?" She held her hand over her mother's dead roses that were stationed in a vase on the living room table. Instantly they came back to life.

"How did you do that?" McGonagall was awestruck. Never had she seen a student with such perfect control of her abilities, and without a wand!

"I've been practising," Lily beamed.

"Suppose we let Lily into this … into this," Carson looked down at the letter still clutched in his hand, "Hogwarts, are we never going to see her?"

"She can come home during holidays, and probably will since I see what a loving family you are, but it is a boarding school, so she will practically be living there for the next seven year," McGonagall said, telling her rehearsed words for probably the thousandth time that year.

"Seven years …" Violet said.

"I know that seems like a long time," McGonagall said, "but it's what's best for Ms Evans. If she doesn't go to a magic school, she'll never be able to fully control her magic, and might do something she regrets or can't take back."

"The best for Lily … Carson, I think I'll let her go."

"What?" Carson said, awestruck. "Just like that?"

"It's what's best for our baby girl. We'll see her on holidays."

"And might I remind you that the term does not start until September," McGonagall added but was left unnoticed.

Lily had watched the conversation and when her mother gave her acceptance, she shrieked out of pure joy. "I'm going to learn magic, I'm going to get a wand, I'm going to be a witch I'm …"

"If you agree sweetie, I guess I can to," Carson said, kissing his wife's cheek.

"But what about equipment she might need?" Violet asked McGonagall.

"You can find that all in Diagon Alley, a wizard street stationed in London," McGonagall said, standing up. "You find all the information on that inside, plus a train ticket. I see that my job here is done. I wish you good luck, and I'll be looking forward to seeing you on the 1st of September, Ms Evans.

"Thank you," Lily said, and promptly went over and hugged her parents tight. "You are the best parents ever. And thanks Professor McGonagall, I'll be looking forward to seeing you too."

'Hogwarts is going to be so much fun …' she thought before she heard the door shut behind McGongall.

"Come here Ki'n," she said to the cat, that hadn't been changed back. "Let's go to Severus and tell him the good news."

**A/N:** Wow, it's been so long that I don't even have a number any more. The chapter has been sitting on my computer, half-written, for a month, but today I decided to do something about it and continue. I don't really know how long you have to wait for the next one. School's almost out so we've been doing a lot of essays and projects, but hopefully they'll be finished soon. I'm going to update as soon as possible, though, and hopefully within the next two weeks, because I can't promise anything.

I haven't had an inspiration for the next chapter, but I'm thinking Severus or one of the Marauders, probably Sirius (I have some good ideas for him), but I can't wait to see what you thought of this chapter.

I made Lily slightly more prankster-like than she really is, but truthfully, that's how I picture her before she and Snape went to separate houses, and I'm thinking she probably buried herself in her books (Hermione) until she got to know the other girls, but then the damage was done, and she wasn't a prankster anymore. That's my explanation.

-Danee


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